Rainbow Boys Short Essay - Answer Key

1. Why is Jason hesitant to attend the Rainbow Youth meeting? Why has he come if he is so afraid?

Jason is hesitant to attend the Rainbow Youth meeting because he is afraid someone from school will see him and think he is gay. However, Jason has had strange thoughts about boys he knows and he wants to know if this means he is gay or simply bisexual.

2. How does Jason know that Nelson is gay? What does Jason think of Nelson?

Jason and everyone else at school knows that Nelson is gay because he behaves flamboyantly and has never hidden his true sexual identity. Jason dislikes Nelson because he thinks Nelson is the personification of gay and it is embarrassing to him the way Nelson dresses and behaves.

3. How does Jason react when he sees Nelson in the Rainbow Youth meeting? Why?

When Jason sees Nelson in the Rainbow Youth meeting, he is not surprised. However, Jason is mortified because he does not want Nelson to go to school and tell people that he saw Jason there.